When the NFL is doing a mass schedule reveal, teams need to get creative. Have you ever imagined how the Dallas Cowboys might do in the cast of Yellowstone?
Yes, the most popular show on cable TV is based in Montana. But show creator Taylor Sheridan is a native Texan who doesn’t live that far from The Star, the Cowboys base in Frisco. In fact, he spent Christmas Eve watching the Cowboys play the Eagles at AT&T Stadium. So suspend your level of disbelief and pretend that Jerry Jones, the Cowboys owner, got sent the Yellowstone season five script. And Sheridan had the Dallas schedule for 2023.
Jones suggests that Sheridan bring the schedule to The Star for the exchange. And while you’re there, Jones says, audition some of these real Cowboys for roles in that show of his. That includes former Dallas stars like Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin and Dez Bryant.
One man’s script is another man’s schedule.@Yellowstone 🤝 #DallasCowboys football.
Everybody wants to see what happens next season. 🤠🏈
Get @SeatGeek single-game 🎟️s now: https://t.co/XHlhWMoZAP pic.twitter.com/0ZXrtU8jVA
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) May 12, 2023
Yes, real-live Cowboys tried to audition for Yellowstone. Sheridan hired one
As the video opens, Sheridan is opening an envelope when he receives a call from Jones. The Cowboys owner tells him “I believe you have something of mine.” Then Jones tells him how much he loves Yellowstone. Sheridan suggests a trade. Jones gives him the meet up details and Sheridan says he’s on his way.
Then cue the sweeping scenes from the majestic Yellowstone ranch in Montana that somehow morphs into Cowboys headquarters in the north Dallas suburbs. Again, suspend disbelief.
Cee Dee Lamb is the first to audition for Sheridan, who is sitting behind a table. Lamb tells him he’s got “the quickest hands in the West.”
Other pitches Sheridan receives — one Cowboy can “outrun a horse.” Michael Gallup tells him “My name’s Gallup. Come on,” as he breaks into a horse trot.
Big dudes Neville Gallimore and Osa Odighizuwa sing a duet of “Home on the Range.” That’s an authentic Cowboys experience perfect for Yellowstone, right?
Leighton Vander-Esch, who grew up in Idaho, walks in dressed as a real cowboy. Color Sheridan impressed. “Hired,” he says. Another Cowboy tells him “instead of a revolver, I carry a bow and arrow.” Sheridan liked that “ok, that was almost good.”
Trevon Diggs chats up Sheridan. “Mister, I don’t know you, but if you’re wearing an 88, you must be a bad man.” (Sheridan recognizes the dialogue. “I think I wrote that,” he says.)
Some old-school stars suggested a 1993 spinoff
Then old-school Cowboys Irvin, Smith and Aikman pop by to compliment Sheridan for his Yellowstone spinoffs, 1883 and 1923. They’ve got a pitch. How about 1993? “It’s about Cowboys who are in search of treasure,” they say.
Even Dak Prescott wants in on Yellowstone. “I’ll give you one last chance,” says the quarterback. “You leave now or you never leave.”
Finally, Jones walks in like he’s John Wayne. He’s dressed in his best Cowboy clothes. And he’s got a speech for Sheridan.
“You know why I got you here, let me tell you something,” Jones says. “You and I are pretty similar. And the brands we build, Yellowstone and the Dallas Cowboys, they’re similar, too. When you’re a Dallas Cowboy, whether you’re a player or a fan, that means that the team has your back. It means you’re a Cowboy forever. It means you’re living up to the Dallas Cowboy brand. And when you’re branded a Dallas Cowboy, most importantly, it signifies loyalty to the team above all else.”
And Sheridan gives him that big slow clap of approval. But that’s not the end of the presentation. Against a faux Yellowstone background, the Cowboys reveal their schedule. Still, it’s not the end. Jones rides up to The Star in the back of a horse-drawn carriage. He flips the keys to the valets.
“Do not scratch my stage coach,” says Jones.